Gun Violence

In what, to some, might at first glance seem like an unremarkable decision, on Monday, the Supreme Court demonstrated a deep understanding of how domestic violence is perpetrated. On its face, the Court’s decision in Voisine v. United States was a sterile, hyper-technical legal analysis primarily hinging on the meaning of the word “use,” where the Court refrained from discussing domestic violence at any length.

Legal Momentum applauds the Supreme Court’s decision in Voisine v. United States, which will most certainly protect the lives not only of domestic violence victims, but also members of the general public. The U.S. Supreme Court held that under federal law, convicted perpetrators of reckless or intentional misdemeanor domestic violence are prohibited from possessing firearms.

Today is the second annual National Gun Violence Awareness Day. Across the nation, people are wearing orange to honor the millions of lives affected by gun violence and spur action to prevent gun violence nationwide. The Wear Orange campaign is spearheaded by Everytown for Gun Safety. It was inspired by a small group of teens at a South Side Chicago high school who wore orange—the color that hunters wear in the woods to protect themselves and others—to honor the life of a classmate killed by gun violence in 2013.

Legal Momentum applauds and thanks President Obama for taking executive action to end the scourge of gun violence plaguing our country. Too often, domestic violence survivors and their families are endangered by gun violence and threats of gun violence.

Legal Momentum, the Advocates for Human Rights, the Human Rights Clinic of the University of Miami School of Law, and Women Enabled, Inc. (“U.S. Women’s Rights Organizations”) submitted a shadow report on violence against women in the United States to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, and called for the Committee to recommend significant improvements to U.S. law and policy.

In October, 2013, Supreme Court heard arguments in U.S. vs. Castleman, for which Legal Momentum co-authored an amicus brief. The case centered on whether a gun trafficker who abused the mother of his child should be able to legally buy guns. The amicus brief urged the Supreme Court to uphold federal laws—and those state laws like Tennessee’s—that were enacted to ensure that domestic violence abusers are prohibited from possessing guns. In March, 2014, the Court decided to uphold the provisions of the Violence Against Women Act that prevent abusers from purchasing firearms. Justice Sotomayor cited information from Legal Momentum’s amicus brief in her majority opinion.